Hugh Freeze Wants Spring Scrimmages Against Other Teams
Football fans agree that spring games are not always the most exciting events. Hugh Freeze, head coach for the Liberty Flames, has suggested that teams play against other teams during spring games to make the event more exciting. The teams could also donate the proceeds of the game to charity. Freeze believes that this would be a win-win situation for everyone involved.
Freeze argued that playing against another team would reduce the risk of injuries by 50%. He believes that coaches would be able to control the physicality of the game to avoid players getting hurt. However, this is not a new suggestion. NFL and high school teams already play against each other in scrimmage games. Soccer teams and volleyball teams have spring exhibition schedules. It is just a matter of convincing the NCAA to allow college football teams to do the same.
Although this is an interesting idea, it could be risky for college football teams to play against each other. If one team wins, their coach will want to treat the scrimmage like a real game, which decreases the time spent teaching and preparing the players. This could be problematic as college football teams stay apart for long periods, so they need to learn as much as possible in the spring practices.
It is ironic that Freeze used examples of Alabama and Auburn playing against UAB and Troy, considering none of the Alabama teams have played against each other more than once.
Until this is approved, teams will continue to play against themselves in spring practice games. Auburn is set to play their A-Day Scrimmage Game on Saturday at 1 pm ET on SEC Network+.
